The Centre on Saturday announced a new pension scheme called the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) in which government employees will get assured pension, family pension and assured minimum pension.
The scheme guarantees a pension of 50 per cent of the average basic pay drawn over the last 12 months prior to superannuation, provided the employee has completed a minimum of 25 years of service. For those with lesser service, the pension will be proportionate.
It also ensures a family pension of 60 per cent of the pension of the employee immediately before their death.
The new pension scheme guarantees an assured minimum pension of Rs 10,000 per month on superannuation after a minimum of 10 years of service.
About 23 lakh central government employees would benefit from the UPS, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
“Today, the Union Cabinet has approved UPS for government employees providing for assured pension. 50 per cent assured pension is the first pillar of the scheme and the second pillar will be assured family pension,” he said.
“There will be an option for the employees to opt between the National Pension System (NPS) and UPS,” he added.